Was speed pulled from the Furious 7 title due to Paul Walker’s death?

Paul Walker‘s death affected a lot of people in a lot of different ways and, now, it looks like his untimely demise is changing the title of the new Fast and Furious movie.

Michelle Rodriguez pays tribute to Paul Walker

Over the weekend, Universal Pictures announced the title as Furious 7 and also debuted the action-packed trailer for the flick. The movie looks awesome and all of the actors who brought the original story to life way back in 2001 are involved.

Most of the titles throughout the history of the franchise have been altered in a strategically clever way. From 2 Fast 2 Furious for the second movie, to TheFast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, most of the titles include some kind of reference to the plot. In the case of Furious 7, the title seems extremely strategic, but not as far as the plot is concerned. Instead, this time around, filmmakers look to have changed the title to pay homage to Paul Walker and express sensitivity to the manner in which he met his untimely end.

Furious 7 marks the first time that the word “fast” is not being used and we can’t help but think that the word was purposely omitted in an effort to exercise sensitivity towards Walker’s death and the way that he died. The franchise favorite was killed in a fiery car crash last November and, though it was speculated that mechanical problems may have been the cause of the accident, it was ultimately ruled that unsafe speeds are what caused the collision. Furious 7 was still in production when Walker was killed.

Fast & Furious 7 set after Paul Walker’s death is not the same

Walker’s family, fans and fellow cast members were left devastated at his loss and, for many, this last film is being used to help in the grieving and healing process. “Its very, very weird,” Vin Diesel told Access Hollywood in July of continuing on with filming after Walker’s passing. “The good thing is, because we took all the time, the movie is a true testament to everyone coming together and wanting to honor both the saga and our brother, and there’s something very beautiful about that.”

What do you think? Was the word “fast” left out of the title because of Paul Walker’s death or is it just a coincidence?